Steve Jobs stayed tag-less by leasing a new car every six months

One well-known quirk about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was that he never had a California tag affixed to his Mercedes — something made possible through a legal loophole.

California vehicle laws stipulate that anyone with a brand-new car has a maximum of six months to affix a license plate to their vehicle. This loophole was utilized by Jobs, according toITWire, to avoid putting a plate on his car.

"Jobs made an arrangement with the leasing company; he would always change cars during the sixth month of the lease, exchanging one silver Mercedes SL55 AMG for another identical one," author David Heath revealed. "At no time would he ever be in a car as old as six months, and thus there was no legal requirement to have the number plates fitted."

The detail comes from a former senior security official at Apple, Jon Callas, who is currently the chief technology officer at Entrust. He explained how Jobs legally drove without a tag, dispelling rumors that Jobs would pay fines from police for not having a plate affixed.

Jobs was even known to park his $130,000 Mercedes sideways into a handicapped space on Apple's corporate campus in Cupertino, Calif.

Jobs's Mercedes, as seen in 2010 without California plates.

Jobs's affinity for the Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG is said to have rubbed off on Scott Forstall, Apple's senior vice president of iOS software. A recent profile of Forstall revealed that he takes after Jobs and drives the same car his former boss did — though it did not make any mention of missing license plates on Forstall's car.

Yes, this made me laugh, too, although this attitude is probably what ultimately killed him, or at least killed him when it did, as opposed to however much additional time he might still have had if he only hadn't been so stubborn about getting his surgery in 2003. And that's sad. Because he didn't have to die. At least not yet.

I find this story hard to believe considering the SL55 AMG stopped being built in 2008.

You can order whatever you want from AMG. You're right, the model changed in 2008 and with it the motor but if you are a good customer (and someone who purchases a new SL AMG every 6 months is a very good one) you can always get your wishes fulfilled. Hell, you can even tell them you want your car to have pink exterior and yellow interior. As long as you pay what they want of course...

One well-known quirk about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was that he never had a California tag affixed to his Mercedes -- something made possible through a legal loophole.

he would always change cars during the sixth month of the lease, exchanging one silver Mercedes SL55 AMG for another identical one," author David Heath revealed. "At no time would he ever be in a car as old as six months,

Jobs was even known to park his $130,000 Mercedes sideways into a handicapped space on Apple's corporate campus in Cupertino, Calif.